Colby Guy
In his short NHL career, Florida Panthers goalie Spencer Knight has not had too many bad games.
Last Tuesday in Newark, however, would be considered one of them.
The Panthers gave him the opportunity to make up for that Thursday night on home ice and the rookie was simply spectacular.
Knight ended up setting a rookie franchise record with 45 saves as the Panthers beat the Devils 4-1.
Prior to the win Thursday night in Sunrise, Knight gave up six goals on 30 shots in a 7-3 loss to New Jersey.
It was the second half of a back-to-back; In the first game, Knight gave up four goals on 18 shots against the New York Rangers.
Knight looked like a different player on Thursday.
The player Florida is counting on this season.
“Obviously, it’s tough when you lose back-to-backs,” Knight said after the win. “I think you just got to go day-by-day and look at the task at hand.”
The 20-year-old previously never lost in regulation before the trip to New York, going 8-0-1 with a .918/2.43 in his first nine appearances.
In those two losses, he went .792/5.12.
Thursday, his 45 saves set a franchise record for saves by a rookie goalie overtaking the 44 made by Jacob Markstrom (Florida’s previous ‘goalie-of-the-future’) in 2013.
Way to bounce back.
“I try not to dwell too much on my past performances,” Knight said. “I think a big thing is just, when you’re not at the rink, mentally get away from it.
“Whether it’s talking to some friends outside of hockey or doing something else, that’s also a big thing.”
Knight simply does not dwell on his past performances — good or bad.
It seems to work.
Thursday night, Florida interim coach Andrew Brunette described his outing as “unbelievable.”
Knight got his revenge on New Jersey, stopping 45 of 46 shots in a big win against the team that scored six on him nine nights prior.
“No, absolutely not,” Brunette said when asked if he was worried about Knight’s performance last week.
“He has been solid all year and he was thrown in a tough situation. He’s a young player, they all gotta go through it and he went through it tonight. Full confidence he was going to be good tonight. He wasn’t just good, he was great.”
On Thursday, the Devils threw everything they had at the Florida goalie in the first period.
Knight had his work cut out for him. He was up for the task.
The Devils had a 22-13 advantage in shots, a lot of them being high-danger opportunities.
Knight was the Panthers’ backbone in that period, allowing just one goal and it turned out to be the only one he allowed all night.
“Knighter bailed us out in the first,” Anthony Duclair said. “That’s not how we want to play, giving up 20-plus shots in the first period, or any period of that matter. That’s not Panthers hockey. Knight was huge for us.”
In the final two frames, Knight stopped all 24 shots he faced.
“It’s fun to face more shots, but I approach the game pretty similar,” he said. “You try not to focus on what’s coming at you, you try to focus on you. Whatever happens, happens. Sometimes, it’s like a shot appears, you just have to find a way to stay mentally even keel for that.”
The advanced stats speak for themselves as to how good Knight was on Thursday.
According to MoneyPuck, He had an expected goals against of 4.97.
Knight only gave up the one goal.
“I know what I’m capable of,” Knight said when asked if he felt locked in. “That’s how I know how I can play sometimes, I’m just trying not to think of how I’m locked in, you just come to the rink and react, it’s a reactive position.
“You can’t really control what the shooter does, so just react and go with the flow.”
The fans in Florida have taken notice of Knight’s ability too.
During the national anthem, when the singer gets to “gave proof through the night,” fans bellow with a loud “Knight” in support of their young goaltender.
Knight has heard it and, when caught on camera during the anthem, grinned a bit on Thursday.
Fans shout it when Sergei Bobrovsky is in net but it is louder when Knight is the starter and on the ice.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” Knight said of the new tradition.
“The fans in the arena, I can’t thank them enough for their support. Just coming in and feeling so welcomed is awesome.”